Markets Update: Cryptocurrency Traders Are Still Searching for the Elusive 'Bottom'

The entire crypto-economy has been meandering just above $109 billion after the last two weeks of market dumps. Volume has been light this week as digital asset enthusiasts and traders are now pondering the crypto market’s next big move.

Market Surfers Wait for the Next Big Crypto Wave

Digital currency prices are at their lowest in over 15 months and prices have dropped considerably over the last few weeks. After many of the top cryptocurrencies touched significant lows on Dec. 7, about 48 hours later markets saw a brief spike upwards. Right now, most of the top coins are moving in a consolidated triangular pattern, seeing some lighter swings on Monday, Dec. 10.

The top 10 cryptocurrencies on Monday, Dec. 10, 2018.

At the time of publication, the price of bitcoin core (BTC) is about $3,478 and is down roughly 4.5% over the last 24 hours. The second highest valued market held by ripple (XRP) is down 4.8% and each coin is trading for $0.30. Ethereum (ETH) prices have lost 6.2% during the last day and the coin is being swapped for $91. The cryptocurrency stellar (XLM) is the fourth largest market cap today as each coin trades for $0.11. Meanwhile, the stablecoin tether (USDT) has seen significant demand and now captures the fifth largest crypto valuation. Tether usage has reached a three-month low, however, as other stablecoins like TUSD, USDC, and GUSD have seen significant volume increases.

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) Market Action

Bitcoin cash (BCH) markets are doing better today after a little skirmish with BSV in terms of prices on Dec. 7. Today, BCH is trading for $106 per coin and markets are down 2.9% for the day and 33% for the week. Bitcoin cash has about $86 million in trade volume which still pales in comparison to the $500 million global trades per day the coin held prior to the fork. The top five trading platforms swapping the most BCH today are Lbank, Binance, Huobi, Bluebelt, and Hitbtc. The biggest pair today being swapped against BCH is ethereum (ETH) which captures over 34% of Monday’s BCH trades. This is followed by BTC (28.5%), USDT (25.6%), USD (4.9%), and the EUR (2.3%). This week BCH is the 13th most traded cryptocurrency out of the 2,000+ coins on the market.

BCH/USD 7-day chart on Dec. 10.

BCH/USD Technical Indicators

Looking at the BCH/USD four-hour chart on Bitstamp shows bulls are attempting to push forward after some heavy hits the past few days. At the moment, one BCH is trading for $101 per coin. The two Simple Moving Averages (SMA) show the long-term 200 SMA is still above the short term trendline indicating the path toward the least resistance is still down.

BCH/USD 4-hour chart on Bitstamp. 12/10/18

However, the 30-minute BCH/USD chart shows the two trend lines recently crossed paths and on the four-hour chart it looks as though they may cross hairs as well. The relative strength index on the four-hour shows oversold conditions at -39 and the MACd shows room for improvement too, but more so toward the downside. Order books on Bitstamp indicate that BCH bulls need to fight current resistance that’s stacked up until the $125-$150 zones. If bulls can surpass this region then they could gain some upward momentum. On the backside, order books show fairly solid foundations between now and $88 per BCH.

BCH/USD 4-hour chart 3:00 p.m. EST, 12/10/18.

The Verdict: Traders Too Skeptical to Call the Bottom

Most traders have been conversing about whether or not current prices can be regarded as ‘the bottom’, a topic they have pondered multiple times this year. Prices have shown various bull traps and dead kittens bouncing from the all-time highs last December all the way to the lowest of lows this December. BTC/USD shorts are still incredibly high and short positions placed on Bitfinex touched all-time highs on Dec. 6, reaching more than 42,000 that day.

BTC/USD shorts on Bitfinex. 12/10/18.

This metric has tapered off a little, but BTC/USD short positions are still incredibly high (37,000) with the price as low as it is today. Nevertheless, BTC dominance among all digital asset market valuations has remained unscathed over the last three months. Again, another week has passed and cryptocurrencies have seemingly bottomed out and continue to consolidate for now, leaving traders to pray they played their positions right this time around.

Where do you see the price of BCH, BTC and other coins heading from here? Let us know in the comments below.

Disclaimer: Price articles and markets updates are intended for informational purposes only and should not to be considered as trading advice. Neither Bitcoin.com nor the author is responsible for any losses or gains, as the ultimate decision to conduct a trade is made by the reader. Always remember that only those in possession of the private keys are in control of the “money.”

In recent market action, BTC shorts have increased by 20% during the last two weeks, while longs have continued to… read more.

Jamie Redman

Jamie Redman is a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open source code, and decentralized applications. Redman has written thousands of articles for news.Bitcoin.com about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

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